The Deceived viewers react to 'creepy' first episode of the C5 thriller

The Deceived
(Image credit: Charles Fearn)

Did Paul Mescal's new series impress C5 viewers?

The Deceived hit our screens on Monday night, with viewers across the country settling down to watch the new thriller.

The series follows university student Ophelia (Emily Reid) who recounts her affair with married lecturer Dr Michael Callaghan (Emmett J Scanlan).

However, Ophelia starts to feel conflicted, especially after she meets Michael’s wife and famous author Roisin Mulvery (Catherine Walker).

The Deceived

What is Michael hiding?

The first episode already amped up the drama, with Ophelia believing she might be pregnant and Roisin dying in a fire.

It gets even weirder when Michael starts asking her to wear his late partner's clothes, and even wants her to live in his partially burned down home.

We also saw the introduction of Paul Mescal's character Sean, who plays a local fireman that gets close to Ophelia.

These shocking events have already got fans intrigued, with many taking to Twitter to share their thoughts.

And it seems the general consensus is that the series has already started to creep people out!

One fan wrote, "Just realised #theDeceived is written by @LisaMMcGee its really good, but quite creepy!! @mescal_paul"

Another added, "Really enjoyable. Should have been in the Autumn with the cold, dark, moody and creepy nights. Excited to see where it goes next... Eyes #TheDeceived"

A third wrote, "Got to say it #TheDeceived is wicked..first episode I'm hooked already!"

And a fourth added, "Thoroughly enjoyed #TheDeceived @LisaMMcGee - SUPERBLY written and BRILLIANTLY acted! I don’t know if I’ll sleep tonight though!"

The C5 thriller is a four-part series, and fans won't have to wait very long to see how it ends.

Is Michael hiding something? And what are the creepy sounds coming from the house?

The Deceived airs over consecutive nights, concluding on Thursday night at 9pm.

Lucy Buglass
Senior Staff Writer

Lucy joined the WhatToWatch.com team in 2021, where she writes series guides for must-watch programmes, reviews and the latest TV news. Now she works for our sister site TechRadar in the same role. Originally from Northumberland, she graduated from Oxford Brookes University with a degree in Film Studies and moved to London to begin a career writing about entertainment.

She is a Rotten Tomatoes approved film critic and has a huge passion for cinema. She especially loves horror, thriller and anything crime-related. Her favourite TV programmes include Inside No 9, American Horror Story, Stranger Things and Black Mirror but she is also partial to a quiz show or a bit of Say Yes to the Dress